Kitchener Rangers Individual Scoring Records

It doesn’t happen often anymore, but an individual scoring record of an Ontario Hockey League team was broken in 2010-11. This is especially a rarity for a team that existed through the high-flying 1970’s and 1980’s.

Jason Akeson won the Eddie Powers Trophy as the OHL’s leading point-getter in 2010-11 with 24 goals and 84 assists for 108 points. It was the 84 assists that became the new standard for the Kitchener Rangers. Akeson was also awarded the Jim Mahon Trophy as the right winger with the highest offensive output, the Leo Lalonde Trophy as the top overage player and the William Hanley Trophy as the most sportsmanlike.

Akeson played four season with the Rangers, beginning in 2007-08. Undrafted by and NHL club, Jason signed an entry level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers through the 2013-14 season. He will begin play in 2011-12 with Philadelphia’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Adirondack Phantoms.

The owner of the Kitchener Rangers record for most goals in a single season belongs to Wayne Presley. Presley scored 63 goals in 1983-84, along with 76 assists for 139 points. Like Akeson, Presley was awarded the Jim Mahon Trophy as the top scoring right winger. 1983-84 was the second of three seasons in the OHL for Presley. He began with the Rangers and was shipped to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds midway through his final season.

Presley was a second round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, 39th overall. He played 684 regular season NHL games between 1985-86 and 1995-96 with Chicago, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Kitchener Rangers individual record for most points in a single season goes way back to 1976-77. Dwight Foster led the league in scoring that year with 143 points and was awarded the Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy. This was Dwight’s last of four seasons with the Rangers.

Foster was picked sixteenth overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1977 NHL Amateur Draft and tenth overall by the Houston Aeros in the 1977 WHA Amateur Draft. He chose Boston and played parts of four seasons with the club. Dwight played 541 regular season games in the NHL from 1977-78 to 1986-87. He began and ended with the Bruins, playing with the Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils and Detroit Red Wings in between.

Brian Bellows played two seasons with the Rangers, 1980-81 and 1981-82. In his rookie season he contributed 116 points, the current team record for most points by a first year man. In his second season with Kitchener, he played just 47 games but scored 45 goals and totaled 97 points. The Minnesota North Stars liked what they saw and took Bellows second overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft.

Bellows played 1188 games in the NHL from 1982-83 to 1998-99 with the North Stars, Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Mighty Ducks and Washington Capitals. He helped the Montreal Canadiens to their last Stanley Cup victory in 1992-93, over the Los Angeles Kings.

Jason Gladney set the Kitchener Rangers individual record for most points in a single season by a defenseman during the 1993-94 season. It was Gladney’s last of three full seasons with Kitchener and he recorded 92 points from the point.

Jason was drafted by the Washington Capitals in the ninth round of the 1993 NHL Entry Draft, 225th overall. He never played a NHL game but did spend a few years of professional hockey in the IHL, ECHL and AHL. He spent time in Germany’s 1.Bundesliga in 1997-98 and played four seasons of In-Line Hockey in the Roller Hockey International.